Method for electromagnetically shielding a sensor window

• US 9,073,084 B2
• Filed: 12/21/2012
• Issued: 07/07/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 12/16/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Lockheed Martin Corporation (Martin Marietta Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Lockheed Martin Corporation (Martin Marietta Corporation)
• Inventors: Jones, Michael I., Hines, Leslie D.
• Primary Examiner(s): TRINH, MINH N
• Application Number:
  US13/725,294
• Publication Number:
  US 20130136853A1
• Time in Patent Office: 928 Days
• Field of Search: 295/921, 296/00, 296/01, 298/25, 427/96.2, 427/97.1, 427/256, 428/156, 428/172, 428209-210, 428/426, 428430-433, 428/500, 428/913, 174/390, 343/700.MS, 343/909, 343/846
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: B05D 5/12 to obtain a coating with specific electrical properties
• CPC Class Codes: B32B 2038/0092 Metallizing
• CPC Class Codes: C23C 28/02 only coatings only including layers of metallic material
• CPC Class Codes: H05K 9/0094 being light-transmitting, e.g. transparent, translucent
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 156/1089 of discrete laminae to single face of additional lamina
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 29/49002 Electrical device making
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 428/24479 including variation in thickness
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 428/24612 Composite web or sheet
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 428/24917 including metal layer

Abstract

A method of electromagnetically shielding a sensor window with a metallization coating including providing a randomized elliptical grid pattern having a plurality of randomly distributed elliptical shapes, where providing includes arranging the elliptical shapes on the sensor window such that the elliptical shapes are physically connected to each-other as a result of direct shape-to-shape contact or overlap, where arranging includes increasing a pattern density, which is a ratio of elliptical shapes per unit of sensor window area, towards an edge of the sensor window; and where the elliptical shapes are hollow to allow for transmission of electro-optical radiation through the sensor window.

Claims

1. A method of electromagnetically shielding a sensor window with a metallization coating, the method comprising:

providing a randomized elliptical grid pattern having a plurality of randomly distributed elliptical shapes, where providing includes arranging the elliptical shapes on the sensor window such that the elliptical shapes are physically connected to each-other as a result of direct shape-to-shape contact or overlap, where arranging includes increasing a pattern density, which is a ratio of elliptical shapes per unit of sensor window area, towards an edge of the sensor window; and

where the elliptical shapes are hollow to allow for transmission of electro-optical radiation through the sensor window.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the randomized elliptical grid pattern is radio-frequency (RF) resonant.

3. The method of claim 1, where the elliptical shapes are distributed on the sensor window according to a normal probability distribution.

4. The method of claim 1, where the grid pattern is a radio-frequency (RF) absorptive randomized elliptical mesh with ellipses arranged in electrically isolated RF-resonant patterns.

5. The method of claim 1, where providing further includes depositing each elliptical shape such that is has 1-2 micron deposition thickness and such that the elliptical shapes have an average major axis width of 10 microns.

6. The method of claim 1, where said arranging includes permitting effective transmission of electro-optical radiation through the sensor window while shielding a sensor behind the sensor window from radio-frequency or electro-magnetic radiation.

7. The method of claim 1, where arranging includes distributing the elliptical shapes according to a uniform probability distribution.

8. The method of claim 1, where arranging includes randomizing sizes of major and minor axes of at least one of the elliptical shapes.

9. The method of claim 1, where arranging includes selecting elliptical shapes and shape distributions such that the randomized elliptical grid is spoke-free.

10. The method of claim 1, where arranging includes randomizing a rotational orientation of at least one of the elliptical shapes with respect to the sensor window.

11. The method of claim 1, where providing a randomized elliptical grid includes providing a randomized elliptical grid where at least one of the elliptical shapes has major and minor axes of equal size.

12. The method of claim 1, where arranging includes randomizing a thickness of the elliptical shapes.

13. The method of claim 1, where providing an randomized elliptical grid includes providing a randomized elliptical grid where all the elliptical shapes are circles.

14. The method of claim 1, where arranging includes physically connecting each elliptical shape to at least one other elliptical shape.

15. The method of claim 1, where arranging includes electrically connecting the elliptical shapes to each-other.

16. The method of claim 15, where arranging further includes electrically connecting each elliptical shape to at least one other elliptical shape.

17. The method of claim 15, where arranging further includes electrically connecting at least one of the elliptical shapes to a window frame encompassing the sensor window.